So Glad

On October 10, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

1 Chronicles 16: 8 – 9


O give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; make known His deeds among the peoples. Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; speak of all His wonders.


Now there is a beautiful picture of praise. Here speaks the voice of one who is truly grateful for all the Lord has done and for who he is. Sometimes we need to remind ourselves of all that the Lord has done for us so that we can be just as jubilant as was David in the above passage. I have to remind myself but once I get started I find there is an infinite well from which I can draw. Then it becomes easy to speak of all that He has done in your life. His wondrous deeds begin to bubble out of you. Sometimes when you begin to think of what the Lord has done it is hard to get past the blood of Jesus. That alone can fill you with praise. Think on all the things you have and all that God has done for you and then sing praises to Him.
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Healthy Advice

On October 7, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

2 Chronicles 16: 12

And in the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa became diseased in his feet. His disease was severe, yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but the physicians.

How completely idiotic does Asa seem to you? Of course, this is what most of us do but it sounds really goofy when it is written out. You can hear the incredulity in the author’s tone. 
 
What is your first reaction when you get sick? Do you run for your Bible? I wish I could say that I do but it is often an afterthought. If we do pray without ceasing, pray at all times, then it would only be natural for us to immediately put our symptoms at the Father’s feet. Our immediate impulse ought to be to tell our Father how we feel at any point in our daily conversation with Him. 
One gets the impression from this brief statement about Asa that he allowed his condition to worsen without inquiring of the Master Healer. I would wish that you would tell God about every symptom, no matter how minor as soon as we become aware of it. Certainly, though, as symptoms progress we should seek not only healing but the Father’s advice. Even in small matters there will be things He can tell us that will help us feel better. Mostly, however, we should seek the Lord’s face and with that comes His healing power. 
 
It is not wrong to seek the advice of physicians as Asa did in this passage. God gave us physicians and has revealed truth to them in order to help us. Asa’s problem, and ours, is that we seek the physician’s guidance without ever consulting the one who has all health knowledge and who created us in the first place. He knows how our bodies work better than anyone and everything that human beings know, they got from the Father. So, the moral of this story is that we should not limit getting our medical advice from the medical community only. We should inquire also of our Father and God.

God is able to supernaturally heal you. He is also willing and able to tell you remedies which you can employ on your own. Most of all, Don’t be an Asa. Don’t wait for your sickness or disease to grow severe before you begin to seek the Lord. If you will start out looking to Him, you can avoid a great deal of discomfort and that is always a good thing.

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Trust Me

On October 6, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 26: 3                 NIV

You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.

Father God will keep your mind in perfect peace. How does that sound? Imagine, no matter how much stress or turmoil is going on around you, your mind will be abiding in perfect peace. But wait a minute, does that describe you and every other Christian you know? Are we all perfectly peaceful? No. This promise comes with a condition. God will give us perfect peace when we trust in Him. So, to state it a bit differently, “For those who trust in you, Father, you will keep their minds in perfect peace.”

There are a lot of verses which encourage us to trust our Father. The most well-known is probably Proverb 3: 5 – 6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.” That is such an inspiring verse that you would expect us all to make a Herculean effort to put all of our trust in God. So why don’t we?

We have learned too much from the world and we just hold on too tightly. It is hard to let go of the things about which we have concerns. However, we can begin by acknowledging Him in everything and that will help us to move into deeper trust. That means that we include Him in everything we do. You know, the Bible says that we are to pray at all times (Ephesians 6: 18). Praying all of the time makes perfect sense if you are going to acknowledge Him in everything you do. Of course, prayer has to get real if you are going to do this. If you think and expect prayer to be amazingly eloquent and formal, you are never going to make it. Prayer is just talking with your Father. When you make it an ongoing conversation, as if you are talking with a friend who is going to accompany you all day, then it becomes really easy to pray at all times. There is another verse which says to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5: 17). How are you going to do that if you ritualize prayer? The answer is that you are not. This relationship with the Father needs to get out of church and into your life.

Another big factor is just lack of experience. Once you begin giving Dad your trust it becomes easier to do it next time. A friend of mine just sold a house. She had written down exactly what she wanted and expected in a buyer. Well, there were two contracts which fell through. What? This had been prayed over. Here is where trust comes in. She never lost her peace, never left the facts dissuade her from what she believed God was going to do. She placed her trust in the Father and He kept her in a constant state of peace and her mind tranquil. Do you want to know the end of the story? Yep, the house sold for the full asking price and everything else she asked for when she wrote down what she wanted also came through. Her trust and faith had been built by years of trusting God with small things and then bigger things. How much easier do you think it will be for her to trust Him next time? Nothing breeds success like success.

Trust me in this as I attempt to entice you into trusting the Father. I am being honest with you. The Father can keep you in perfect peace but first you must let go. You’ve got to give Him the reins and expect, and trust, that He is going to come through for you.

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Follow the Leader

On October 5, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

2 Chronicles 31: 21

And every work which he began in the service of the house of God in law and in commandment, seeking his God, he did with all his heart and prospered.


This verse is about a fellow named Hezekiah. Hezekiah taught me how to follow the Lord. I remember clearly the day in 2005 when the Lord gave me this verse. It radically transformed my life and I hope it will have the same effect for you. I saw in this verse my way through the maze of all of the things I thought I should do. I gained an understanding of how I would make important decisions in my life. This verse was part of an epoch journey that has led, and is leading me, into a deep, abiding trust in the Lord; a trust that is freeing and optimistic.

The Lord showed me that if I would seek Him, He would show me the way to go. Even if, or when, the path looks danger fraught or even just silly, He taught me that I could trust Him. He taught me to throw my whole heart into whatever He has shown me. It has been difficult putting aside my reservations but therein lies the freedom.

Whatever God is telling you to do, throw your whole heart into it and trust Him to work out the details. It is His job to prosper you, not yours. Your job is to follow His leading and trust Him. Your job is to seek Him. The rest is on Him. Once you are sure of the way the Lord is leading you, toss your worry aside and put your whole heart into that which He is leading you, even if it makes no sense. He knows what he is doing. Really! Trust Him with all your heart.

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Appointed Praise

On October 4, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

1 Chronicles 16: 4

And he appointed some of the Levites as ministers before the ark of the Lord, even to celebrate and to thank and praise the Lord God of Israel.

King David erected a tent to house the Ark of the Covenant. On the day that he had the Ark moved to the tent, he sent singers and musicians before the ark and he, himself, also sang and danced before the procession. After the ark was placed in the tent, King David made offerings to the Lord. When he finished making the offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord and then he appointed a whole group of people to celebrate before the ark. There were people who played instruments, some even who blew trumpets continually. They were assigned to bring praise to the name of the Lord and to give thanks. It was important enough that the King involved himself in seeing it done.

These days we do not have priests to perform these tasks for us. We have entered into an intimacy with the Lord such that we do not need intercessors or mediators between us and our father. Jesus purchased our way to the father. We can now lay our own petitions at the feet of the father ourselves. That means, though, that we must also learn to praise and give thanks for ourselves. David setup a system whereby there was always someone in the tent offering thanks and praise to the father. That suggests to me that we are to be in a continual state of thanksgiving and praise. Even as you remind the Lord of the things for which you ask, offer your praise and honor him. Tell him how grateful you are to even be able to come into his presence. Let him hear how you love him and trust him. And really, if you will do that first, before you begin to petition him, you will find that your asking will change in tone. You will have a different perspective on his provision, more confidence and assurance I think. And that also will please the Lord.

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Overcoming Praise

On October 3, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 107: 8                (Amplified)

Oh, that men would praise [and confess to] the Lord for His goodness and loving-kindness and His wonderful works to the children of men!


We have plenty we can celebrate about the goodness of God. He has freed us from every burden and sin and has set us up on the high places with Him. Now let us boldly praise His name and tell of his goodness. Also, confess the victories of the Lord. Confess his victories in your life and over all the works of the devil. Confess His healing in the face of the devil’s sickness. Proclaim your liberty. Say it aloud. “My God has overcome every evil thing in this and in the age to come. He has set me free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8: 2) and I praise you Lord that you have. I praise your name and glorify you because you are worthy of all praise.”

It’s that easy, though I admit that it sometimes takes practice. Confess His word. Let it come out of your mouth. Thank Him from the bottom of your heart. Give Him praise. It all works together for your overcoming in His name.

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Dare to Dream

On September 30, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Genesis 37: 6 – 8

And he said to them, “Please listen to this dream which I have had; for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf rose up and also stood erect; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf.” Then his brothers said to him, “Are you actually going reign over us? Or are you really going to rule over us?”


Joseph was seventeen years old when he had that dream. Just a youngster but he knew he had heard from God. We all know the end of the story. He did eventually rule over his brothers. There was quite a journey between the time of the dream, though, and the realization of it. What amazes me about Joseph is that he never gave up on the dream and he never gave up on God.

Frankly, if I was sitting in a prison or serving as a slave in a foreign country I am pretty sure that I would have doubted me, God or both; probably both. I would probably have started out thinking that I didn’t really hear from God. I only thought I heard from God but if I really did then I wouldn’t be sitting in this filthy prison. I just have been wrong about hearing from God. But it seemed so real, so certain. Well, maybe it is that I missed it somewhere along the line. Maybe I really did hear from God but I blew it somehow and now I am off the track. Yeah, that’s it. Well, even so, why isn’t God big enough to bring about his will even when I make a mistake?

Does any of that sound familiar? Have you ever had similar doubts? Maybe it has been several years since you had that word from God and you see absolutely no evidence that you are any closer to the realization of it than you were the day you received it. The trite statement of the day is, “Have faith.” It seems trite but really that is the thing we must do. In order to accomplish great things with God, we supply the faith and he supplies the power. You’ve got to hang in there, though, when the situation looks bleak. Even when you are Egypt and you think your miracle is in Canaan, hold on. What God did in Joseph’s life He is able to do in yours. Brush off those old dreams and goals. Give them a new coat of paint. You are coming out of prison and the future is bright.

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